Contrary to popular belief, the Ford Motor Company did not invent the assembly line. But in 1913, Henry Ford did revolutionize it by adding a conveyor system to move the cars along the line, reducing the time it took to build a car from more than 12 hours to less than three.
Fast forward to present day to find the headlights of the electric car peeking around the nearest corner, with autonomous driving technology trailing not far behind. This fundamental shift in the automotive industry, when paired with the alternative energy expectations of the modern automobile consumer, brings the industry to an inflection point not entirely unlike the one Ford ushered in with the advent of mass production.
Unlike the early days of Ford however, automobile manufacturers now operate their businesses on a global scale, from incumbent to startup. To stay competitive they must effectively manage the pace of today’s unprecedented pace of change to take advantage of a momentous market opportunity. And it all starts with the supply chain, and the daunting need to transform, minimize inventory and maximize cash flow to drive profitability. You can explore all of this and more – and find out how a single supply chain planning platform can meet these challenges – in the on-demand webinar ‘Digital transformation for the automotive supply chain’. Watch now to learn how Kinaxis® helped Ford:
- Connect regional operations to improve collaboration and drive global efficiencies
- Create data transparency across all planning systems to support more effective operating processes
- Accelerate decision making through optimized organizational and governance structures
Join David Thomas, Director, Global Capacity Planning, Ford Motor Company (ret.) and Manik Sharma, VP, Global Industry Strategy & Solutions, Kinaxis to find out how Kinaxis RapidResponse® paved the way to a digital supply chain transformation at Ford.
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